Top 10 Richest Footballers In Africa 2023 [Latest!]

2023 is here, and I’m sure you’ll want an updated list of the top 10 richest footballers in Africa by net worth, right? Worry no more, we have done the work for you. Just read, get informed, and let’s have your opinion.

In Africa, there are a lot of rich people to be found. Most of them are well-known businesspeople, musicians, actresses, and of course, football players.

One of the most thrilling and popular sports is football. This game is enjoyed by tens of millions of people from all walks of life throughout the world.

A common motivation for visiting the best betting sites in Nigeria is the desire to wager on the outcome of a match involving the team of one’s favorite football player.

It is not in the thousands of dollars but rather in the millions and millions of dollars that are mentioned when discussing the net worth of the top ten richest African footballers. They are paid from games, the prizes they win, and the sums they receive from endorsement deals.

So, who are the richest footballers in Africa? Who are the highest paid footballers on the African continent? In this data-driven post, you’ll learn more about the earnings, assets, deals, and achievement of your favorite African footballers.

Top 10 Richest Footballers In Africa 2023 [Disclosed!]

1. Samuel Eto’o (Net Worth) – $95 million

• Full name: Samuel Eto’o Fils
• Date and place of Birth: March 10, 1981 Douala, Cameroon
• Height & Weight: 1.8 m/ 78 kg
• Nationality: Cameroonian/ Spanish
• Position: Striker
• Former clubs: Barcelona, Chelsea, Everton, Sampdoria
• Former Jersey numbers: 9, 99, 29, 5, 81
• Nickname: little Milla
• Parents: Christine Eto’o (mother)/ David Eto’o (father)
• Siblings: Etienne Eto’o, Mado Eto’o, Sidonie Eto’o, David Eto’o, Pauline Eto’o
• Partner: Georgette Eto’o
• Children: Lynn Eto’o, Siena Eto’o, Annie Eto’o, Etienne Eto’o, Maelle Eto’o
• Net worth: $95 million
• Samuel Eto’o has won the accolade for African Player of the Year four times (in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2010), making him the player with the most individual honors in the history of the African footballing continent. Eto’o leaves Cameroon as their all-time leading scorer, among other accolades.

I am happy to report that, once again, Samuel Etoo is the richest footballer in Africa. To this day, Samuel Etoo is universally acknowledged as Africa’s most popular football celebrity.

The head of the Cameroonian Football Federation is 42-year-old Samuel Eto’o Fils, a former player and football executive from Cameroon.

Eto’o is without a doubt the richest football player in Africa, with a net worth of $95 million, as of 2023, placing him as one of the richest footballers in the world.

Eto’o won the African Player of the Year award a record four times: in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2010. In his prime, he was considered one of the best strikers in the world and one of the greatest African players of all time.

At the age of 16, Eto’o relocated to Real Madrid, one of the richest football clubs in the world. Prior to arriving for Mallorca in 2000, when he scored 70 goals, he had multiple loan stints due to competition in his position from more seasoned players.

Eto’o was an essential part of the Barcelona team that won three La Liga championships. He also played a crucial role in the Barcelona attack that defeated Real Madrid in the 2006 UEFA Champions League Final, scoring the game’s winning goal.

He also scored in the 2009 UEFA Champions League Final, which was won by a front three that included Lionel Messi, Thierry Henry, and Eto’o.

The only other player to ever score in two UEFA Champions League finals is him.

Eto’o finished third in the voting for the FIFA World Player of the Year in 2005 while playing for Barcelona. He was also nominated twice to the FIFA FIFPro World XI, in 2005 and 2006.

Eto’o has competed in six Africa Cup of Nations and four World Cups.

He is Cameroon’s all-time best scorer and third-most capped player, with 56 goals in 118 appearances. He is the tournament’s all-time leading scorer with 18 goals.

In August 2014, Eto’o declared his retirement from international football.

Following his election as president of the Cameroon Football Federation (FECAFOOT) in December 2021, Eto’o was chosen to serve as an ambassador for the recently finished FIFA 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

What is Samuel Eto’o’s source of income?

Samuel Eto’o still earns an amazing income from his commercial enterprises, despite the fact that his wage has decreased in recent years as a result of his retirement from soccer.

Eto’o has been able to invest in numerous real estate projects all around the world thanks to his extraordinary earning potential from his playing days. He has a $20 million villa in Portofino, Italy, and a luxurious home in Paris.

Do you want to discover who the other 9 richest footballers in Africa are?

2. Mohamed Salah (Net Worth) – $90 Million

• Date of birth: June 15, 1992
• Nationality:  Egyptian
• Current club: Liverpool FC
• Role-playing: Forward
• Estimated net worth: $90 million
• Marital status: married
• Awards: Over the years, Salah has been crowned the PFA Player of the year 2018, African Player of the Year 2018/2019, CAF Most Promising Talent of the Year 2012, Premier League Player of the Month 2018,2019, FWA Footballer of the Year 2018, Premier League Golden Boot 2017,2019, BBC African Footballer of the Year 2017, and many more.

Mohamed Salah, usually known as Mo Salah, is a forward who plays for Liverpool and captains the Egypt national team. He is an Egyptian professional football player.

One of the highest-paid players in the Premier League, one of the best football leagues in the world, and the highest-paid player at Liverpool, is Mo Salah, and he is the most followed Premier League player on Instagram, the most followed African footballer on Instagram, and the highest paid African footballer in the world as of July 2023.

Salah is renowned for his finishing, dribbling, and pace. He is regarded as one of the best players in the world and among the greatest African players of all time.

Salah joined Liverpool in 2017 for a then-club record deal of £36.9 million following a strong year with AS Roma.

Salah broke the record for the most Premier League goals scored (32) in a season of 38 games and led Liverpool to the 2018 UEFA Champions League Final in just his first season.

The club’s victories in the Champions League and Premier League the following two seasons were made possible in large part by Salah, who has since also won the FA Cup and the League Cup.

Mohammed Salah net worth today is estimated at $90 million. He has won a number of individual trophies, including two PFA Players’ Player of the Year titles, three Premier League Golden Boots, the Premier League Player of the Season and the Premier League Playmaker of the Season. In 2018 and 2021, Salah also placed third for the Best FIFA Men’s Player award.

Following Liverpool’s 7-0 thrashing of Manchester United in 2023, Salah surpassed Robbie Fowler as the Premier League’s leading scorer.

When he scored the second goal in a 3-1 Premier League victory against Norwich at Anfield on February 19, 2022, Salah became the 10th player for the club to reach 150 goals across all competitions and did it the second fastest (232 matches) after Roger Hunt (226).

With a weekly salary of £350,000, Mohamed Salah is the highest-paid player for Liverpool. His current deal is slated to end in 2025. Check out Liverpool Players Salary in this post.

Mohamed Salah is the second richest African footballer in the world as of 2023 with a net worth of almost $90 million.

3. Didier Yves Drogba Net Worth – $90 million

• Full Name: Didier Yves Drogba Tebily
• Nickname: The African King, The Drog, Tito
• Date of Birth: 11 March 1978
• Age: 43 years
• Place of Birth: Abidjan, Ivory Coast
• Nationality: Ivorian
• Height: 1.88 m
• Weight: 84 kg
• Parents: Albert Drogba, Clotilde Drogba
• Wife/Partner: Diakite Lalla (2011-2020)
• Children: Isaac Drogba, Iman Drogba, Kieran Drogba
• Occupation: Professional Former Footballer
• Playing Position: Striker
• Club(s): Le Mans, Guingamp, Marseille, Chelsea, Shanghai Shenhua, Galatasaray, Montreal Impact, Phoenix Rising
• Jersey/Kit Number: 11
• Net Worth: $90 million
• Awards: Ten trophies for Chelsea and Galatasaray (4 FA Cups, 2 League Cups, 2 Community Shields, 1 Champions League, and 1 Turkish Super Cup) African Footballer of the Year, Ivory Coast Player of the Year, FIFA World Player of the Year, BBC African Footballer of the Year, amongst others.

Drogba is very wealthy and currently number 3 on our list of top 10 richest footballers in Africa with an estimated net worth of $90 million.

Drogba began on his path to football when he was sent by his parents to live with his uncle, professional footballer Michel Goba.

He had skills, trickery, confidence, and technique. He is one of the best in the history of African football.

Drogba has worked with some of the world’s largest brands which include, Samsung, Pepsi, Adidas, Nike, and Konami.

In 2006, Didier Drogba captained the national team of Ivory Coast from 2006 until his retirement from the Ivory Coast national team in 2014.

During his time in the Ivory Coast national team, he was the nation’s all-time top goal scorer. Close to his retirement, he played in Chelsea FC, one of the ten richest soccer clubs in the world.

He is well-known for his remarkable scoring abilities, passion for the game, and love for luxury cars.

4. Yaya Toure (Net Worth) – $70 million

• Full Name: Gnégnéri Yaya Toure
• Nickname: The tall introvert
• Date of Birth: 13 May 1983
• Birth Place: Bouaké, Ivory Coast
• Marital Status: Yes
• His Wife Name: Gineba
• Age: 38 years old
• Profession: Professional Football Coach and Former Football Player
• Nationality: Ivorian
• Religion: Muslim
• Zodiac Sign: Taurus
• Height: 1.88 m
• Weight: 89 Kg
• Position: Midfielder
• Clubs: Olympiacos, Monaco, Barcelona, Manchester City, Qingdao Huanghai

The 39-year-old Ivorian professional football coach and former midfielder Gnégnéri Yaya Touré is next on the list of the top 10 richest footballers in Africa.

He works as an academy coach for Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League. Although Touré has played center back, including for Barcelona in the 2009 UEFA Champions League final, he once wanted to be a striker.

He has been recognized as one of the best players in the world at his position, yet he has played a box-to-box midfielder for club and country throughout the bulk of his career.

Voted African Footballer of the Year in 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014, Toure is recognized as one of the finest African footballers of all time.

From 2004 to 2015, Touré won 100 matches for the Ivory Coast, playing for his country at the 2006, 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cup competitions.

Additionally, he represented them in six Africa Cup of Nations tournaments in 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013, and 2015, leading them to triumph in 2015 while also helping them as runners-up in 2006 and 2012.

Kolo Touré, a football player who played alongside him at Manchester City – the winner of the 2022/2023 league, and for the national team, is his younger brother.

Having formerly played as a striker, Touré now generally plays in the middle of the pitch as either a holding midfielder or a box-to-box midfielder, frequently alternating between an offensive and defensive stance throughout games in the latter position.

What is Yaya Toure’s source of income?

Football was the main source of income for Toure. He resides in a home in the picturesque village of Cheshire, where he shares a neighbor with Wayne Rooney as well as some of the richest soccer players in the world.

His mansion apparently caught fire from candles in 2013, making headlines.

Fortunately, no one was wounded, and only one room suffered minor damage from the fire.

He also enjoys driving fast cars, and his garage is home to some of the most costly automobiles in the world.

One of the richest footballers in Africa, as of 2023, Toure is predicted to have a net worth of $70 million.

Related: Top 10 Richest Footballers in Ghana

5. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Net Worth) – $50 Million

As of 2023, Pierre-Emeric Aubameyan is the 5th mention on our the list of the top 10 richest footballers in Africa.

Emilio Pierre-Emerick François Aubameyang, a 33-year-old striker for Premier League team Chelsea, is a professional football player.

Aubameyang is regarded as one of the best African strikers of his generation and is known for his speed, finishing, and off-the-ball movement.

He was a former Gabonese international and the nation’s all-time leading scorer. He was born in France.

Aubameyang started his professional club career with AC Milan in Italy, but he never played for the team due to a series of loan stints in France.

In 2011, he relocated to Saint-Étienne. He won the Coupe de la Ligue while playing for Saint-Etienne before joining Borussia Dortmund of the Bundesliga in 2013.

Aubameyang became the most expensive Gabonese player of all time and one of the most expensive African players ever in 2018 when he signed for Arsenal in a trade of £56 million (€60 million), setting a then-club record for association football transfers. He concluded the 2018–19 season as the league’s joint-top goalscorer while playing for Arsenal, where he also won an FA Cup.

Aubameyang joined Barcelona in 2022 after mutually agreeing to end his contract with Arsenal.

He did, however, join Chelsea F.C. at the conclusion of the 2022 summer transfer season, and he eventually moved back to the Premier League.

Gabon’s all-time leading scorer is Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. He played in four competitions for the Africa Cup of Nations and the 2012 Summer Olympics before making his senior debut for Gabon in 2009 at the age of 19.

Aubameyang is one of the richest African footballers in the world, with an estimated net worth of $50 million as of 2023.

6. John Mikel Obi (Net Worth) – $45 million

• Date of birth: April 22, 1987
• Nationality:  Nigerian
• Role-played: Midfielder
• Estimated net worth: $60 million
• Career: Retired
• Marital status: married
• Awards: He has a total of 10 major winners’ medals all at Chelsea: 2 Premier League 2009–10, 2014–15,4 FA Cup 2006–07, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2011–12,2 Capital One Cup 2006–07, 2014-15, 1 UEFA Champions League2011–12, 1 UEFA Europa League 2012–13. Mikel also won the African Cup of Nations in 2013.

John Mikel Obi is very wealthy and currently number 6 on our list of top 10 richest footballers in Africa with an estimated net worth of $45 million.

While this professional footballer is a former player, he represented Nigeria in many championships. He takes the top spot on the list of the top 15 richest footballers in Nigeria.

Mikel John Obi, a 35-year-old former professional footballer from Nigeria, primarily played as a defensive midfielder but was capable of filling a number of other midfield positions.

He played 91 times for Nigeria over the course of a 14-year international career, between 2005 and 2019, making six goals while leading the Super Eagles to the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations title.

Mikel declared that the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations would be his final competition for Nigeria in July 2019.

After the competition, in which Nigeria finished third, he announced his retirement.

7. Emmanuel Adebayor Net Worth – $45 million

• Date of birth: Feb 26, 1984
• Nationality: Nigerian/ Togolese
• Career: Retired
• Role-played: Striker
• Transfer worth: In 2017, the superstar joined the Turkish side Istanbul Basaksehir on an 18-month deal which is expected to earn him around £50,000-a-week or £2.6million a year after tax.
• Estimated net worth :$45 million
• Marital status: married
• Awards: Adebayor was picked by CAF for the 2008 African Football of the Year on 10 February 2009 at an awards ceremony held in Lagos, Nigeria. He was the first Togolese to win the African Football of the Year.

Sheyi Emmanuel Adebayor, a former striker for Togo, is a 39-year-old former professional football player, and comes 7th on the list of the richest footballers in Africa in 2023.

He previously played for LaLiga club Real Madrid, Turkish clubs Istanbul Başakşehir and Kayserispor, Paraguay’s Club Olimpia, and Togolese club Semassi. He also played for Ligue 1 club Metz, Monaco of Monaco, the Premier League’s Arsenal, Manchester City, Tottenham Hotspur, and Crystal Palace.

While playing for Arsenal, he was chosen as the African Footballer of the Year for 2008. Later in his career, when he joined Olimpia Asunción in 2020, he rose to the position of highest-paid player in Paraguay.

Adebayor represented Togo at the nation’s first and only World Cup appearance to date, the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.

In January 2010, Adebayor was one of the players involved when the Togo team’s bus came under gunfire on the way to the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations in Angola, after which he retired from national team duty. 

In 2013, he returned to the Togo team for the 2013 African Cup of Nations in South Africa, where he helped them to qualify for the quarter-finals. 

He is currently Togo’s all-time top goalscorer with 32 goals.

Adebayor announced his retirement from professional football on March 21, 2023, at the age of 39.

One of the wealthiest African footballers of all time, Adebayor has made the most of his money by playing football and endorsement deals.

He recently flaunted his multi-million dollar property on his social media as a brand ambassador for 22Bet, one of the best betting companies in the world.

One of the richest African footballers in the world as of 2023, Emmanuel Adebayor has a net worth of about $45 million.

8. Michael Essien Net Worth – $35 million

• Full Name: Michael Kojo Essien
• Nickname: The Bison, Essien
• Profession: Professional Footballer
• Height: 178cm and 1.78m, 5 feet 10 inches
• Weight in kg: Not known
• Hair color: 85Kg
• Eye color: Black
• Body statements: Not known
• Date of Birth: 3 December in 1982
• Nationality: Ghanaian
• Birth Place: Accra, Ghana
• Playing position: Midfielder
• Father name: James Essien
• Mother name: Aba Gyandoh
• Marital Status: Married
• Essien’s wife: Akosua Puni Essien
• Children’s names: Michael Essien Jr, and Michelle Essien

Coming up as number 8 on the list of the top 10 richest footballers in Africa, is the former professional football player Michael Kojo Essien, a 40-year-old Ghanaian who played as a midfielder, and now a part of Nordsjaelland’s coaching staff in the Danish Superliga.

Additionally, Michael Essien earned more than 50 national team appearances for Ghana. Essien was regarded as one of the top midfielders in the world during his time.

Essien began his professional playing career in Ghana with Liberty Professionals. He moved to France in 2000 to join Bastia, where he spent three seasons and made over 60 appearances before joining Lyon, the current Ligue 1 champions, in 2003.

In 2003–04 and 2004–05, Essien won back-to-back league championships at Lyon. In addition, he was named Ligue 1 Player of the Year in 2005.

Essien joined Premier League team Chelsea in 2005 for a transfer price of £24.4 million, making him the most expensive African football player in history at the time.

Essien contributed to Chelsea’s victories at the FA Cup, League Cup, and Premier League in 2006 and 2010.

He and Chelsea won the UEFA Champions League in 2011–12, and he was also a member of the Blues club that placed second in the competition in 2007–08 after losing the championship match against Manchester United on penalties.

In the 2006–07 and 2008–09 seasons, Michael Essien won the Chelsea Goal of the Season award twice.

Essien has additionally played for teams including Real Madrid, AC Milan, and Panathinaikos.

Essien debuted for the senior team in January 2002 and has competed three times for his country at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Essien has additionally represented Ghana at the FIFA World Cups in 2006 and 2014.

Essien was a physically muscular midfielder who frequently occupied the central midfield position and was renowned for his potent long-range shot.

Michael Essien will be among the wealthiest African footballers in the world in 2023 with a net worth predicted to be approximately $35 million.

Related: Top 5 Great boxers of all time

9. Victor Moses (Net Worth) – $21 Million

• Date of birth: December 12, 1990
• Birthplace: Kaduna, Nigeria
• Occupation: Footballer
• Sun sign: Sagittarius
• Nationality: Nigerian
• Height: 5’10” (178 cm)
• Parents: Austin and Josephine Moses

Victor Moses, a 32-year-old professional football player from Nigeria, can play either wing for the Russian team Spartak Moscow. He is the 9th on the list of the richest footballers in Africa today.

Throughout his career, he has also occasionally been used as a wing-back.

Moses started his career in the Championship with Crystal Palace, but Wigan Athletic noticed him after seeing him play and gave him his Premier League debut in 2010.

After two years, Moses’ performances began to improve, and the then-champions of Europe, Chelsea, began to show interest.

Moses’ nine-year affiliation with Chelsea came to an end in July 2021 when Chelsea announced that he had signed a permanent transfer to Spartak Moscow.

His two-year contract with the team was confirmed by Spartak the same day.

Moses’ Spartak contract was extended to 2024 on February 10th, 2022.

On May 29, Moses and his team defeated Dynamo Moscow 2-1 in the Old Russian Derby to claim the 2021–22 Russian Cup for their organization.

Moses, who was born in Nigeria, played for England youth teams at the under-16, under-17, under-19, and under-21 levels, but he chose to play for Nigeria rather than receive all of England’s caps.

Prior to his retirement from international competition in 2013, he made his senior team debut for Nigeria in 2012, earning 38 caps and scoring 12 goals.

Victor Moses is one of the richest Nigerian footballers and as of April 2023, the 32-year-old winger is estimated to have a net worth of roughly $20.6 million, placing him among the richest African footballers.

10. Sadio Mané (Net Worth) – $20 Million

• Date of birth: Apr 10, 1992
• Place of birth: Bambaly
• Age: 31
• Height: 1,74 m
• Citizenship: Senegal
• Position: Attack – Left Winger
• Foot: right
• Player agent: ROOF
• Current club: Bayern Munich
• Joined: Jul 1, 2022
• Contract expires: Jun 30, 2025

This list of the richest footballers in Africa will not be complete without mentioning the great Sadio Mané.

Sadio Mané, born on April 10th, 1992, an attacker for Bundesliga club Bayern Munich and the Senegal national team, is a Senegalese professional football player.

Mane is recognized as one of the finest African players of all time and among the best players in the world.

He is renowned for his quickness, pressing, and dribbling.

Mané started his professional career at the age of 19 with Ligue 2 club Metz, but left after one season to join Austrian club Red Bull Salzburg in 2012 for a sum of €4 million. In the next season, he won the domestic league and cup double.

Mané moved to Southampton in England during that summer for a club-record cost of £11.8 million.

Mané joined Liverpool, a rival Premier League team, in 2016, reportedly for a cost of £34 million. He aided the Merseyside Reds in their back-to-back appearances in the UEFA Champions League Final in 2018 and 2019, which they eventually won.

In addition, he tied for the league lead in goals scored in 2018–19, earning the Premier League Golden Boot. Mané then assisted Liverpool in winning the 2019–20 Premier League, ending their 30-year league title drought.

He became the third African to achieve the 100-goal mark in the Premier League in October 2021.

In the 2019 and 2022 Ballon d’Or competitions, Mané placed fourth and second, respectively. In The Best FIFA Men’s Player competition, he placed fifth in 2019 and fourth in 2020.

Mane is renowned for having a shy and reserved demeanor, and it has been said that one of his greatest qualities is his capacity for handling stress.

In addition to his offensive, technical, and creative abilities, analysts have praised his high defensive work-rate as well as his skill in the air despite standing only 1.75m (5′ 9″) tall.

Mané primarily plays as a left-sided winger, which gives him the ability to cut into the middle and shoot on goal with his stronger right foot.

After Luis Dáz joined Liverpool for the 2021–22 season, Mané started to play a more vital role in the attack.

Mané gave £250,000 ($319,103; €284,813) in 2019 to help his hometown of Bambali, Senegal, build a school.

Mané gave £41,000 ($52,564; €46,083) to the national committee battling COVID-19 in Senegal in March 2020.

He gave £500,000 ($684,932; €561,987) in 2021 to help build a hospital in Bambali.

In addition, Mane invested in the construction of a school, gas station, and post office for his neighborhood, providing the school with free computers and free access to the 4G internet service he invested in for the hamlet.

Mane has invested almost £700,000 ($684,932; €561,987) on these upgrades overall.

In addition, he ordered that every family in his hometown of 2,000 people get a €70 monthly allowance.

The Senegalese striker earns £19.4 million a year, making him Bayern Munich’s highest-paid player.

Sadio Mane is estimated to rank among the richest African football players in the world as of 2023 with a net worth of $20 million.

Who is the Richest African Footballer in the World?

Who is the world’s wealthiest African football player?
Samuel Eto’o will be the richest African football player in the world as of July 2023.

The former Cameroon international is the richest African footballer in the world, according to estimates of his net worth, which is $95 million.

Ten Richest Footballers In Africa (Conclusion)

Are you jealous? Try harder

The wealth of those 10 richest African players is the best illustration of how Africans can rise beyond poverty to pursue their passions and become the happiest people in the world with fulfilling lives and careers.

So it should come as no surprise that football superstars prefer to splurge on the best and newest gear.

Dream big because every single one of these football players once had a dream and persisted in pursuing it through diligence, concentration, perseverance, patience, and humility.

Never fail to remember that!

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